It’s never Obama’s fault, is it?

For U.S. President Barack Obama, the campaign is never over. This latest bit of Washington paralysis has provided him with another opportunity to get out on the hustings and give hell to the Republicans. Somebody needs to tell this guy he won the election.

One thing being largely ignored in the debate over the U.S. government shutdown is just how decisive Obama can be when he’s in an ideological brawl with his opponents and trying to convince the American public that the GOP is the reason the U.S. economy is in a sustained spiral. When faced with tough foreign policy decisions, Obama vacillates, complains that the issue is another leftover from the Bush era and ultimately excuses himself from any personal responsibility for whatever decision he ultimately does (or does not) make.

His bizarre dance around Syria demonstrates the typical Obama policy strategy: Draw a line in the sand, claim others drew the line for you, advocate bombing Syria, back away from that, muse about funding the Syrian rebels, appeal directly to the American people on TV, allow Russia to negotiate with the Syrians … move on to the next crisis. One could be overly critical of the president’s capricious nature; really, we should be grateful that his foreign policy schemes never reach fruition before he’s distracted by another issue.

Obama does not so much govern as a chief executive as he campaigns as a perpetual Democratic candidate. He has probably presided over more ceremonies honoring the slain of more mass shootings than any other president — yet he uses every solemn occasion to campaign against the Republican record. He addresses his audiences like an election is just around the corner, complete with a cheering section. He never loses sight of the partisan moment. Obama consistently addresses issues as if he were a meteor of change — instead of someone who’s been running a national government for almost five years now.

Obama consistently addresses issues as if he were a meteor of change — instead of someone who’s been running a national government for almost five years now.

Take the government shutdown. Obama is not so confident this time that he is right as he is confident that he can win. Make no mistake, this is an assiduously planned blame-game that has more to do with public relations than the president’s vision for health care. Obama smells victory in this crisis and he’s obviously enjoying himself much more now than he did when he was toying with the notion of punishing Syria — somehow — for its human rights abuses.

Republican House Speaker John Boehner cannot be termed an ideologue. He is much more of a RINO than a Tea Partier and has rolled over for Obama before, much to the chagrin of the Republican base.

So if he appears intransigent at the moment, he clearly thinks this is the time for it. As the leader of a caucus elected to oppose or reform Obamacare, he has the moral duty and authority to reject Obama’s attempt to expedite his policies without question. Lest we forget, a majority of Americans may be opposed to the government shutting down (who in their right minds would favour it?) but they remain highly skeptical about the economic feasibility of Obamacare.

From Obama’s comments, and those from Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, you might conclude that the Democrats were not a key component of the U.S. government, let alone in charge of the executive branch. But that is precisely where Obama wants to go on this. This crisis plays to his strengths: demanding change, blaming Bush and Herbert Hoover for the economy and making as many rousing speeches as he can between golf dates.

Obama remains in deep denial over the fact that he is the establishment. He is the President of the United States. He won the office twice now — and if a constitutional amendment did not stand in his way, he certainly would try for a third time.

Whatever your position is on the viability or desirability of Obama’s health care plan, this ongoing saga of shutdown threats, debt ceilings and fiscal cliffs is pathetic. The U.S. national debt is approaching $17 trillion dollars. Obama cannot imagine spending less on an increasingly bloated welfare state. It makes even conservatives yearn for the era of liberals like Lyndon Johnson, who as president managed to inaugurate the Great Society, fight a war in Vietnam, beat the Soviets to the moon — and lower taxes.

For Americans watching this latest standoff in their living rooms, as their national debt clock ticks over every hour, the prosperity, hope and power of the 1960s must seem as distant as the British Empire.

David Krayden was raised on Vancouver Island and has written extensively on Western political issues over the years, including time as a columnist for the Calgary Herald. Krayden was the host of Calgary’s Liberty Today radio program and most recently worked as an editor for Sun News television. Krayden was a public affairs officer in the Royal Canadian Air Force and spent almost a decade on Parliament Hill as a communications staffer.

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